As Samsung products continue to be used by U.S. consumers at a growing rate, the company faces more competition from U.S. tech companies and a higher potential for legal battles. This means that the South Korean company must work to win the trust of U.S. lawmakers.

Apparently, Samsung has worked pretty hard at this over the last year. According to Bloomberg, the company spent a record amount of money on Washington, D.C. lobbyists.

In 2012, Samsung spent $900,000 on lobbyists, according to Bloomberg -- this is up from the $150,000 it spent in 2011. The issues that the company targeted included intellectual-property infringement and telecommunications infrastructure.

Samsung told Bloomberg that its expanded effort is "a prudent step as part of day-to-day business operations, our growing presence outside of our headquarters country, and our commitment to transparency," but declined to comment further. CNET also contacted Samsung for comment and will update this story when we get more information.

Samsung has been involved in a highly public legal battle with Apple over the past year regarding patents for its Galaxy S3 smartphone. Apple claims that Samsung's device infringed on designs for its iPhone. Apple was awarded $1 billion in damages by a jury in August, however the lawsuit is now on appeal.

Despite Samsung throwing a lot of money toward Washington, D.C., it's spending far less than some U.S.-based tech companies. Facebook spent $4 million to lobby U.S. lawmakers in 2012, which was an increase of 196 percent over 2011. And, Google spent $16.48 million on lobbyists in 2012, while Microsoft spent $8.09 million. According to Bloomberg, Apple spent $2 million, which was down 13 percent from 2011.

About the author

Dara Kerr is a staff reporter for CNET focused on the sharing economy and tech culture. She grew up in Colorado where she developed an affinity for collecting fool's gold and spirit animals.
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